Mat-forming wheels are components that often are present in lines for the manufacturing of disposable, sanitary absorbent articles, such as diapers, sanitary napkins, incontinence protectors and the like. Sometimes such articles are manufactured in rather small batches. Those batches can consist of different types of articles or different sizes of the same article. When different batches are to be produced after each other in the same manufacturing line, which is often the case, this involves a change of moulds on the mat-forming wheel. The moulds can for example consist of mould plates of solid stainless steel and the exchange of all these plates for different mould plates is time-consuming, which is a problem, especially if a series of small batches are to be produced. There is therefore a need for a mould construction which is easy to mount and remove for shortening the time of stand-still for the mat-forming wheel and thereby the whole manufacturing line. It is of course important to shorten the time of stand-still also when different large batches shall be manufactured.
Nowadays, discrete particles of highly absorbent material, so called superabsorbent material (SAP), are often mixed in the fibres to be deposited in the moulds of a mat-forming wheel. The mixture of fibres and SAP-particles are drawn into the moulds by suction forces created by suction boxes located in the interior of the mat-forming wheel, and the mixture of fibres and SAP-particles has a considerable speed when entering the mould openings. There is therefore a great risk that the SAP-particles will bounce out of a mould when encountering a wall of the mould. This is a problem both with respect of cost and contamination of the environment or contamination of other components in the manufacturing line. Another problem caused by SAP-particles is that they wear out moulds and thereby makes it necessary to change moulds without changing the articles manufactured. Also for this reason, a mould that is easy to mount and remove is desirable.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,973,291 discloses an endless open mesh container to which a relatively thick substrate, which can be made of natural rubber or a foam material, is adhered by glue or adhesive. There is no mention in this document that the substrate shall be releasbly attached to the endless container.